Bryan Timm
Fist few minutes of Poker Night 2 on Steam were quite bizarre. Brock was somehow able to continue betting after going all in, then the game crashed later that hand. Unusually poor quality so far, considering how well the first game turned out.
on 28 Apr 2013 10:23 AM

Richard Miller
Gamers Don’t Just Game Blogging has taken the world by storm. With the rise of social media spreading an uninterrupted voice around the world, blogs are just another way to shout. There are millions of blogging cites with just as many topics; from biking to fashion and from sex to Christianity, voices are heard across the web. Game culture is one of those voices leading the charge is a website called Gameinformer.com. Its one of the leaders in socially revolutionizing the gaming world by enabling to read reviews and previews of upcoming games, but most importantly, it’s a major blog site. Gaming itself is not recognized as a true culture in the real world. It is seen as a mind numbing experience that destroys children and raises prison rates. However, this is not what gaming is about, through the virtual pages of Gameinformer.com it’s clearly shown within blogging the true voice of game culture. Gamer blogging creates a connection within the blogger and reader, it becomes a release when the real world rejects their culture, and it lets them share their sense of pride for gaming within an accepting community. A gamer’s blog creates a deep emotional connection with the reader and blogger. A blog by Jordan LaPorte titled, “Being badass isn’t always Better,” describes the “badass” feeling games have today. The overwhelming action of destroying hundreds of enemies on screen, wielding over the top weapons, and fighting bosses bigger than the screen; all coming down to fast passed gameplay with no time to think about what is actually happening. He describes an emotional helplessness when games offer slow, articulated challenges coupled with a true storyline. In response to this article, fellow gamer Geno writes in, “I like feeling helpless [while gaming]”(). Geno’s response to this blog shows the real connection he felt from LaPorte’s article. As Lange writes in Videos of Affinity when using the “I’m not Dead” video, this blog enables the viewer to have a “cup of tea, with the viewer”(78). Real emotions and real feelings are put out in the open, allowing both the reader and the blogger to feel a sense of connection with one another. They connected when both shared feeling helpless during a game, and appreciating more slow-pased games that allowed them to pause and feel their emotions. Sharing this deep of an emotion bridges these two people together. They may not have been together, but experiencing the same emotion connects them on the deepest level. These blogs also relieve stress when the real world does not accept gamer culture. Gamer culture is in a cage; opened for journalistic amusement when a story sparks their interest, never letting the full beast emerge to show its beauty. A blog written by “JayN7” is a call for change within how the world perceives game culture. He expresses outrage when the media reported on a game called Mass Effect. Reporters cared about nudity portrayed in the game, not the revolutionary decision making engine used to create one of the defining moments in a gaming generation. Once the rant is over he tells the reader thank you for listening to his rant, calling it “unnecessary now that he looks back at it.” This blog shows an idea put forth by Aimée Morrison in her article “Suffused by Feeling and Affect”: The intimate Public of Personal Mommy Blogging. Morrison says, “The emotional outlet offered by blogging provides a release unavailable elsewhere”(41). She describes how more openness and feelings are put into blogging, releasing tension within the blogger. JayN7 does the same thing; he sees the way gaming is portrayed in the real world, and rejects that world. These blogs create a sense of joviality and true community gamers cannot experience within the real world. They come together in a community that rejects all outsiders who do not accept their views on gaming. In a blog written by Kyle Hilliard, he describes how he made video game pancakes. Sixty-four people responded to this post showing their joy for what this person created. Many people wrote in giving their opinion on the pancakes, giving Hilliard admiration for his work and discussing whether or not to eat them. SlickkvicXLII wrote in, “I don't know what I’d do. These are awesome looking pancakes, but I’m pretty sure they're awesome tasting pancakes as well.” As Morrison writes these bloggers are “writing to an audience not of strangers, but of friends, even if some of these friends were initially unknown to the blogger”(42). This blog and the responses to it represent a world of care free thought, where judgments are put aside. Their talking about pancakes, no one in the real world has this in-depth of a conversation about pancakes shaped like video game characters. However, because this community is so close it’s almost seen as irresponsible not to give your opinion on Hilliard’s pancakes. Its clear to see this community is significant to ever person who participates in it. Gameinformer.com gave them a world in which they can create a connection with a blogger, it gave them a release when the real world rejects their culture, and it lets them share their sense of pride for gaming within an accepting community. However, more importantly it gave them a place to live. This community makes gaming what it is today. The enthusiasm and love for gaming is seen in the blogs and comments people post. Gaming is gaming, but the culture behind games today was formed online by the pure feeling each and every gamer felt. Before they had no way of expressing their thoughts. With Gameinformer.com and sites alike, it gave them a voice that connected together. Works Cited 1. Hilliard, Kyle, KH. "GameInformer." Www.Gameinformer.com. Www.Gameinformer.com, 26 Jan. 2013. Web. 13 Mar. 2013. www.gameinformer.com/.../video-game themed pancakes-look-too-good-to-eat.aspx 2. JayN7. "GameInformer." Www.Gameinformer.com. Www.Gameinformer.com, 19 Feb.2013. Web. 11 Mar. 2013. <www.gameinformer.com/.../20 3/02/9/videgames-vs-other-media-a-blogger-s-rant.aspx>. 3. Lange, Patricia G., PGL. "Videos of Affinity on YouTube." (n.d.): 70-87. Print. 4. LaPorte, Jordan, JL. "GameInformer." Www.Gameinformer.com. Gameinformer, 02 Oct. 2012. Web. 11 Mar. 2013. <www.gameinformer.com/.../being badass-isn39-talways-better.aspx>. 5. Morrison, Aimee, AM. ""Suffused By Feeling And Affect:" The Intimate Public Of Personal Mommy Blogging." (n.d.): 37-56. Print.
on 19 Mar 2013 10:37 PM

DoZo
I bet blowing up a piano sounds so awesome
on 27 Oct 2016 9:50 PM

Kayla Herrera
How silly is it that I have a charging dock for my Xbox controllers, that got lost in the move, and now both controllers are dead, and I can't use my Xbox! Might just go back to corded controllers...
on 15 Apr 2013 11:12 AM